Books, Henry Northmore

Horror author Joe Hill introduces his new novel, NOS4R2

The writer also touches on working with Daniel Radcliffe and being Stephen King's son

The latest novel from author Joe Hill is a full throttle horror story. In NOS4R2, a serial killer prowls both real and imaginary worlds in his Silver Wraith Rolls Royce, abducting children for a hundred year reign of terror. The killer takes his…

Cartoon College

Documentary following students at the Center for Cartoon Studies

The Center for Cartoon Studies is a small arts college for aspiring comic artists and writers offering a Master of Fine Art degree to those who pass with their final thesis (which takes the form of a completed comic book). And while there are interviews…

Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan’s Hope

Documentary on the world’s biggest comic convention

Comic-Con in San Diego is the world’s biggest sci-fi, comic and cult convention and Morgan Spurlock’s new documentary is the perfect guide to geek heaven. A place where fanboys and fangirls can feel normal and revel in their passions; there’s a…

Interview: Vic Armstrong - Stuntman behind Indiana Jones, James Bond and Superman

Stuntman and director on high falls, Superman, Indiana Jones and Harrison Ford

Vic Armstrong is one of the hardest working men in Hollywood. In the 60s he started working as a stunt man going on to be Harrison Ford’s stunt double in the Indiana Jones movies and Christopher Reeves’ in Superman. Later in his career he moved onto…

Avengers vs X-Men

Brian Michael Bendis, Jason Aaron and Ed Brubaker are among the writers on this super-crossover

Every year DC and Marvel fans have come to expect a big ‘event’, a huge crossover blockbuster that ties into nearly every title they publish. They can be convoluted and pointless (such as Bloodlines or Zero Hour) while some are great (Civil War or the…

Mark Millar & Lenil Yu - Supercrooks: The Heist

An amalgam of tried and tested formulas heightened by Millar's thrilling enthusiasm

You can see the pitch meeting now: ‘It’s Ocean’s 11 but with superpowers!’ And like so many of Mark Millar’s recent creator-owned series, it would make an absolutely stonking blockbuster. Supercrooks: The Heist is essentially a big heist caper as a gang…

Hot 100 2012: 10-2

John Tiffany, Andy Murray and Luke Fowler among Scotland's hottest cultural contributors in 2012

The Hot 100 is our list of Scotland’s 100 hottest individuals and groups who’ve made a splash this year, from comic book writers to comedians, artists to actors. If they've contributed to Scotland's cultural landscape in 2012, you'll find them here.

Hot 100 2012: 29-20

Chvrches, Cora Bissett and Grant Morrison among Scotland's hottest cultural contributors in 2012

The Hot 100 is our list of Scotland’s 100 hottest individuals and groups who’ve made a splash this year, from comic book writers to comedians, artists to actors. If they've contributed to Scotland's cultural landscape in 2012, you'll find them here.

Hot 100 2012: 100-90

JK Rowling, Tilda Swinton and Andrew Fairlie among Scotland's hottest cultural contributors in 2012

The Hot 100 is our list of Scotland’s 100 hottest individuals and groups who’ve made a splash this year, from comic book writers to comedians, artists to actors. If they've contributed to Scotland's cultural landscape in 2012, you'll find them here.

Profile: Comic book and animation artists in Scotland

An overview of comic and graphic novel authors and artists

We’ve always loved comics in Scotland. DC Thomson ruled the roost in kids comics, launching The Dandy and The Beano in the 1930s. ‘Sales peaked at 1.92m a week in the 50s, that’s about 100m copies in a year,’ says former Dandy editor Morris Heggie. DC…

Interview: Scott Tracy Griffin - Tarzan: The Centennial Celebration

To celebrate 100 years of Tarzan we ask why the character has remained so popular for so long?

Tarzan is one of the most enduring action adventure characters of all time: created by Edgar Rice Burroughs 100 years ago he still lives on in popular culture after all these years. We chat to Scott Tracy Griffin, author of Tarzan: The Centennial…

Interview: Kim Newman - film critic and novelist

The noted writer talks Dracula, horror and vampires

Writer Kim Newman is probably most famous for his film criticism, a champion of horror and cult cinema, writing several books on the subject, while delving into the Video Dungeon at Empire magazine every issue and starting this interview with the fact…

Husband and wife graphic novel team Bryan and Mary M Talbot - interview

The pair collaborated on Dotter of Her Father's Eyes

‘I think we’re living in the golden age of the graphic novel,’ explains veteran comics artist and writer Bryan Talbot, whose art has graced the pages of 2000AD, Batman and Sandman. ‘Every major literary festival has something on graphic novels these…

Roger Gibson & Vince Danks - Harker: The Book of Solomon

TV is a medium that does police procedurals very well and Harker would slot in nicely alongside the current crop of cerebral shows. The most obvious small-screen comparisons could be made here to Sherlock and Whitechapel, as a mutilated body is found on…

Choose Your Own Adventure author Ian Livingstone to visit Edinburgh

The author will appear at both the Book Festival and Edinburgh Interactive

I always had a big interest games. In the 1960s I used to play Diplomacy [a strategic WWI board game] and play-by-mail games. When Steve Jackson and I met up in London in the 70s, we were old school friends and we thought, wouldn’t it be a great idea to…

Highlights from the Fighting Fantasy series of role-playing games

Henry Northmore and Murray Robertson pick their favourite Fighting Fantasy books

The Warlock of Firetop Mountain A collaboration between Steve Jackson and Ian Livingstone, this was the book that started it all. The first installment was written back in 1982, and is set as you set out to plunder the treasure of the mystical mage.

Eddie Campbell - The Lovely Horrible Stuff

An occasionally boring but overall worthwhile mix of art, photos and prose

Eddie Campbell is most famous for his semi-autobiographical tales as well as providing the scratchy art to Alan Moore’s Jack the Ripper opus From Hell. In The Lovely Horrible Stuff, he’s contemplating everyone’s current obsession: money. The first half…

Samit Basu - Turbulence

Action-packed superhero novel set in India

It’s boom time for superheroes in pop culture. The Avengers, The Amazing Spider-Man and Dark Knight Rises are the three biggest films of the year and there are plenty more to come. However original novels about supermen and women are still relatively…

Batman: Knightfall

Timely re-issue that showcases Bane, 'the man who broke the Bat'

Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises is one of the most anticipated blockbusters of 2012. Not only will we get Anne Hathaway as Catwoman but Tom Hardy stars as brutal criminal Bane. To film fans, Bane is a bit of an unknown quantity, but comics…

Independent Scottish Comics round-up

New graphic novels from Stephen Sutherland & Garry McLauchlin, Iain Laurie and more

The Scottish comic scene isn’t all about Grant Morrison, Mark Millar and Frank Quitely (however much we love their work) as there’s plenty talent on offer from Scotland’s small press. Taking Flight (Laser Age Comics) is a superhero tale from writer…

Chris Beckett - Dark Eden

Riveting and imaginative sci-fi novel set on a planet of perpetual darkness

One of the key skills for any sci-fi writer is the ability to create new worlds. They can be wildly different from our own, however it’s the ability to change the variables but still write characters that act in a believable way that is at the core of…

Dan Slott & Humberto Ramos - Spider-Man: Spider Island

New Spidey adventure too frivolous to be genuinely engaging

(Marvel) Spider-Man has always been one of the comics world’s more light-hearted superheroes. While there have been moments of introspection and heartache, he’s always more than ready with a corny quip as he swings into battle. Spider Island continues…

Mark Millar & Leinil Francis Yu - Superior

The Kick-Ass creator's latest ponders what superpowers would mean to those who needed them most

(Titan) Glasgow writer Mark Millar has really picked up the pace on his creator-owned series over the last few years, but what’s more remarkable is how high the quality has remained. Wanted, Kick-Ass and Nemesis were action blockbusters but Superior…

David Kushner - Jacked

An entertaining, if hyperbolic, 'unauthorised' history of Grand Theft Auto

(Collins) After a similar book on Doom, journalist David Kushner returns to familiar ground with Jacked. This ‘unauthorised’ history of Grand Theft Auto traces the game’s development from its early beginnings in Dundee to become one of the highest…

GFF 2012 - Mark Millar interview

The comic book creator of Kick-Ass and Wanted tells us about his role at the Glasgow Film Festival

Mark Millar has written some of the biggest comics of the last 20 years. He’s tackled the X-Men, Spider-Man, Superman and Fantastic Four alongside...